George Richard Follmer (born 27 January 1934) is an American former racing driver and one of the outstanding all-round road racers of the 1970s. Equally comfortable in single-seaters, sports cars, touring cars and stock cars, he won major championships in Can-Am, Trans-Am and the United States Road Racing Championship.
Driver Bio
| Nationality | American |
| Birthplace | Phoenix, Arizona, USA |
| Born | 27 January 1934 |
| First Grand Prix | 1973 South African Grand Prix |
| Last Grand Prix | 1973 United States Grand Prix |
| Years Active | 1973 |
| Current/Last Team | Shadow |
Follmer was born in Phoenix, Arizona, although his family moved to California while he was still an infant.
Career
His path into motorsport began far from glamorous international circuits. Follmer first competed in a Volkswagen Beetle at gymkhana events staged in parking lots around Southern California’s San Gabriel Valley. From those modest surroundings, he built a career that eventually reached Formula One, Indianapolis, NASCAR and Le Mans.
Follmer made 25 starts in USAC Championship Car competition across the 1967–71 and 1974 seasons. Eleven of those appearances produced top-ten finishes, while his sole victory came at Phoenix International Raceway in 1969.
He also qualified for three consecutive Indianapolis 500s between 1969 and 1971. His strongest result came on the final attempt, when he advanced from 29th on the grid to finish 15th in Grant King Racers’ turbocharged Offenhauser-powered car.
Formula One
At 39, Follmer might have appeared an unlikely Formula One rookie, but his experience quickly translated into results. He joined Don Nichols’ new UOP Shadow team for the 1973 season and made his World Championship debut at the South African Grand Prix aged 39 years and one month. That made him Formula One’s oldest debutant since the 1950s, a distinction he has continued to hold.
Follmer finished sixth in South Africa, scoring a point at his first attempt. At the very next round in Spain, he went two places better and claimed third, giving Shadow a podium almost immediately after the team’s arrival in Formula One.
Those early results supplied all five of his championship points. Follmer contested 13 World Championship Grands Prix, as well as several non-championship events, and ended the 1973 season 13th in the Drivers’ standings.
American success
Formula One was only one chapter in a remarkably broad career. Follmer had already won the SCCA United States Road Racing Championship in 1965, establishing himself as one of America’s leading road racers. In 1970, he added two victories in the SCCA Continental Championship for Formula A cars and placed sixth in the final standings.
His greatest season came in 1972. Driving an AMC Javelin, Follmer won four races on his way to the Trans-Am championship. At the same time, he was drafted into Penske Racing’s fearsome Porsche 917/10 as a substitute for the injured Mark Donohue.
Follmer responded by winning the Can-Am title as well, prompting the racing press to nickname him “George Am.” He remains the only driver to capture the Can-Am and Trans-Am championships in the same year.
He continued to excel in Can-Am, finishing runner-up in both 1973—driving for Rinzler—and 1974 with Shadow. Across that three-season run, he amassed six victories and 13 podium finishes. Follmer later returned to the revived championship, placing sixth in 1977 and fifth in 1978. His final Can-Am victory came at St Jovite in 1978, where he defeated future Formula One World Champion Alan Jones in a Prophet-Chevrolet.
Follmer collected a second Trans-Am crown in 1976, this time with a turbocharged Porsche 934, demonstrating that his earlier success had owed little to any single type of car.
NASCAR and IROC
Follmer sampled NASCAR’s top-level Winston Cup Series in 1974, entering 13 of the season’s 30 races. Despite being a relative outsider in stock-car racing, he secured three top-five finishes and one pole position.
He also competed in the International Race of Champions during 1974 and 1975, winning one race in the star-studded invitational series.
Le Mans return
Retirement did not quite close the book. Follmer returned to frontline competition for the 1986 24 Hours of Le Mans and, at the age of 52, finished third overall in a Porsche 956. It was a suitably impressive encore for a driver whose adaptability had defined his career.
Although long retired from professional competition, Follmer has remained active in historic racing, often reunited with the same cars he drove during their original competitive lives.
Away from the circuit, he owned a Porsche, Audi and Subaru dealership from 1977 until 1990. The business was initially based in Pomona, California, before relocating to nearby Montclair.
Honours
Follmer’s achievements have earned recognition from several branches of American motorsport:
- He entered the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1999.
- The West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame inducted him in 2019.
- He joined the SCCA Hall of Fame that same year.
- In 2025, he was inducted into the Trans-Am Hall of Fame.
Grand Prix Stats
| Race Entries | 13 |
| Race Starts | 12 |
| Did Not Start | 1 |
| Best Race Start | 11th |
| Best Race Finish | 3rd |
| Retirements | 5 |
| First-Lap Retirements | 1 |
| Not Classified | 0 |
| Disqualified | 0 |
| Did Not Qualify | 0 |
Podiums
| Podiums | 1 |
| First Podium | 1973 Spanish Grand Prix |
| Last Podium | 1973 Spanish Grand Prix |
| 1st Place | 0 |
| 2nd Place | 0 |
| 3rd Place | 1 |
| Most Consecutive Podiums | 0 |
| Most Podiums in a Single Season | 1 |
| Seasons with Podiums | 1 |
Qualifying
| Qualifying Sessions | 13 |
| Reached Q3 | 0 |
| Q2 Eliminations | 0 |
| Q1 Eliminations | 0 |
| Did Not Qualify | 0 |
Points
| Points Scored | 5 |
| Points Finishes | 2 |
| Most Points in a Single Season | 5 |
| Seasons with Points | 1 |
Stats by Season
| Year | Constructor | Entries | Starts | Wins | Podiums | Poles | Fastest Laps | Front Rows | DNF | Best Start | Best Result | Pts Finishes | Points | Championship |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Shadow | 13 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 13th |
Stats by Constructor
| Constructor | Years | Entries | Starts | Wins | Podiums | Poles | Fastest Laps | Front Rows | DNF | Best Start | Best Result | Pts Finishes | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shadow | 1973 | 13 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
Teammates & Qualifying Head-to-Head
| Teammate | Years | Races | Qualifying H2H |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jackie Oliver | 1973 | 13 | 1 – 12 |
| Brian Redman | 1973 | 1 | 0 – 1 |
